


Five Times Jack Met Sam in Alternate Universes

by magickmoons



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: 5 Things, Alternate Universe, Angst, Community: writerverse, Drama, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode: s01e20 There But for the Grace of God, Episode: s03e06 Point of View, Episode: s03e18 Shades of Grey, F/M, High School, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-30
Updated: 2012-06-06
Packaged: 2017-11-06 08:01:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/416579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magickmoons/pseuds/magickmoons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They're not our Jack and Sam, but they do seem to keep running into each other...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Career Day

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Writerverse Table of Doom Five Things prompt:  
> The challenge was to write a "Five Times" fic where each instance consists of a story of 1,000+ words. So, these are five times that Jack and Sam meet in alternate universes. Some of the meetings are brief, some are angsty, some romantic. There is no overlap between the universes; each chapter is a self-contained story.
> 
> Rating and Warnings are for later chapters

Sam Carter sped into the parking lot, executing a precision parking maneuver into one of the few remaining open spaces. She grabbed her bag and hopped out of the car, hurrying toward the school, increasing her pace as she heard the first bell ring. She was fuming as she jogged down the corridors, scurrying along with the rest of the latecomers, not a position she was used to finding herself in.

She mentally cursed her brother, Mark, for his drunken 3 AM visit. Her father had changed the locks after their last fight, so Mark had had to resort to pounding on the door, yelling to be let in. To keep the peace with the neighbors, Sam had gotten up and let him in, trying vainly to calm him as he railed belligerently at their absent father, who was once again sleeping in his office on base. She had called Mark’s roommate to come get him. It was 4:30 before she got back to bed for what was supposed to be a quick nap before school. And of course, she overslept.

She entered homeroom just as the tardy bell rang and tried to ignore Mrs. Whitesed’s surprised look as she took her seat. The teacher had already started distributing papers to each student.

“Here are your schedules for Career Day.” Sam groaned inwardly as she accepted hers. She had completely forgotten this was coming up; what a way to make an already unbearable day worse. “We have recommended potential career paths based on the aptitude tests you took last month and have noted the booths that should be of greatest interest to you.”

She continued talking as Sam looked down at her schedule, barely resisting the urge to rip it in two when she saw that nearly every branch of the military was highlighted, alongside several high-tech labs and defense contractors. She wondered disgustedly if her father had paid the principal to rig her results.

~ ) O ( ~

Jack O’Neill felt old as he stood behind the table loaded with Air Force publicity materials and watched the high school kids mill around aimlessly. It wasn’t his age; he was still on the right side of 30, at least for another couple of years. No, not age, he mused; it was everything he had seen, everything he had done. He could be 21 and he’d still feel ancient compared to them.

Old and bored, he thought. This was not his idea of a good use of his time, but being stuck on light duty following his latest injury led to crap like this: trying to sell the Air Force to a bunch of kids whose primary goal today was to stay out of class for as long as possible. He’d fielded questions from flirty girls who liked the uniform, jocks looking for bloody war stories, and, surprisingly, one kid who actually had some substantive inquiries.

For the most part though, they all thought it was about fast planes and trick flying. They didn’t realize that one day they’d be holding their CO, their buddy, as he bleeds out on a mission gone FUBAR. And a week after that, they’d be holding his wife as she collapses at his graveside. He winced, trying to rein in his wandering thoughts. It had been a long two years; he thought he’d gotten past it. But then the nightmares started again the night after Sara had said yes.

Bells rang and the next round of students headed in. He idly watched as they came through the doorway. He could almost feel when the tall blonde entered more than see it. Everyone she passed smiled at her, said hi, wanted her to notice them. And she did, free with smiles and kind words. She was definitely someone to be reckoned with in this school.

Christ, he needed to get back into the field; he was threat assessing high school social structures. It was, at best, a little creepy. All the same, he noticed the instant that she threw up a facade.  Her behavior and expression stayed the same, but she lost her awareness, started acting by rote. She pulled into herself and emanated a very subtle stay away vibe; people probably didn’t even notice as they unconsciously allowed her more room. He watched her move blindly toward his corner of the room. She picked up a pamphlet and stared at it.

Sam took a deep breath. This was the last of these little jaunts she had to endure for the day and she could get through without losing it. Then she could go hide in the library for a couple of hours. It was all just so overwhelming, trying to pick a future. One year ago, 366 days to be precise, she and her mom were making plans for a mother/daughter summer trip, visiting schools, researching internships, laughing and excited about all the possibilities lying ahead.

And now, she had to do it all by herself. Mark was living the college life, a little too hard if this morning’s escapade was any indication, and her dad had thrown himself even further into his job. The desk job (and promotion) he had taken “to be closer to his family” had not made him any more present in their lives, physically or emotionally. Sam could go days without seeing either of them.

“Can I help you, Miss?” A kind voice broke into her thoughts and she looked up quickly, seeing only the dress blues, instead of the concern in the warm eyes.

Jack offered a friendly smile, but received only a cold stare in return.

“No, thank you, Captain.”

He nodded, impressed. “You know your ranks.”

“It’s not that hard,” she replied contemptuously.

Jack bit back his knee-jerk response to her attitude. He nodded toward the brochure still in her hand. “You interested in the Air Force? I’d be happy to answer any questions you have.”

She threw the brochure back down. “I know enough to know that I will _never_ go military.”

Jack watched her turn and stalk away, feeling like he had just missed some opportunity there. He just wasn’t sure what it was.


	2. Proven Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Major Jack O'Neill is a guest lecturer at the US Air Force Academy. Cadet Samantha Carter has a lot of questions.

Major Jack O'Neill watched as the lecture hall filled up slowly with a sea of crisp blue uniforms. He scanned the faces and wondered if he was ever that young, even as he distinctly remembered sitting in that very room, enduring countless lectures like the one he was about to give.

He chuckled quietly to himself and continued his analysis of his audience, seemingly a fairly typical class of cadets. The one standout was a young blonde woman sitting front-row center, a book open on her lap. She had apparently tuned out all conversation around her and was busily scribbling notes on whatever it was she was reading.

Colonel Kerrigan stood to introduce him and the class instantly quieted. The blonde quickly marked her place, stowed the book in her bag, flipped to the next page in her notebook, and sat, waiting expectantly, the model student. Jack shook his head grimly. Survival tactics and special ops were not topics that lent themselves to book learning. You could take all the notes you wanted, but if you didn't have the instinct, they'd never help you out in the field. It happened all too often: kids in the field thinking they knew all the answers because they'd aced all the tests. He could still see Jones' frozen, surprised expression as they zipped up the goddamn body bag.

He pushed that thought back into its mental box as he heard Kerrigan finishing up the intro. Jack breezed through his presentation, preferring to present a factual outline as efficiently as possible and allow student questions to guide the remainder of their time. He'd barely finished saying, "Now are there any questions?" before her hand was up in the air. He could see the wry grins on several of her classmates' faces indicating that this was typical behavior, tolerated but not entirely welcomed.

"Yes, Cadet..?"

She jumped to her feet. "Cadet Samantha Carter, Sir."

"Okay, Carter, what's your question?"

Her question, and its several follow ups, were well thought out, quantifiable, and obviously indicative of a textbook mentality.

Jack sighed as her hand raised again and he held out his own hand to forestall her. "Look, Cadet, you obviously understand the material well enough to pass the exam. Let's just leave it at that, all right? Let some of your classmates get a word in?"

A muffled chortle echoed from the back of the room. Her expression set mulishly, and she rose to her feet anyway. "Major, I'm just trying to understand..."

"Cadet Carter," Jack cut her off brusquely. "I can tell that you are very,very smart. Someone with your brains is just not going to end up in the ass end of nowhere trying to survive with two paper clips and a stick of gum. You will be in a nice safe lab or classroom somewhere and your biggest worry will be how to find the coffee machine! Now, sit down."

A red flush spread across her fair complexion as she stood frozen, her eyes locked on his. He waited to see if she would cry or run, but she just nodded and slowly took her seat, lips pressed tightly together.

There were a number of questions from other members of the class, but Jack had to admit that few of them were quite as insightful as Carter's had been. She remained quiet for the rest of the time, listening intently, but leaving her pen lying idle on her notebook.

When they were dismissed, she grabbed her bag and exited quickly. As the other cadets filed out, Jack overheard snatches of the conversations.

_"It's about time she got reamed."_

_"...not the best at everything, I guess."_

Jack maintained a blank poker face until all the students were gone, then looked at Kerrigan with a wince. "Too much?"

The colonel shrugged. "It was your show. And it never hurts to remind them that they have a lot to learn."

"But?" Jack prompted.

"I think Carter might surprise all of us. I've never seen anyone with her tenacity or capacity to learn." He took a seat and motioned for Jack to do the same. "So far, there is nothing she's set her mind to that she hasn't achieved. She might have start from the book, especially if something is new to her, but she gets there eventually. Probably do it a lot quicker than either of us did."

He took in the slightly guilty look on Jack's face and continued, "But really, Major, you were right. What are the chances that she's going to be in the type of situations you've found yourself in?"

Jack sighed. "What'd you say? She might surprise us?"

Late autumn's dusk had already started to give way to full dark by the time Jack left. He took a deep breath, enjoying the cold air, and tilted his head back to look at the stars. A wave of nostalgia had him turning away from the parking lot and hiking across the campus. He skirted the trees until he found the right area and then followed the partially overgrown trail up the hill to the spot where it opened to a small clearing.

~ ) O ( ~

Sam looked up the tiny sliver of moon just appearing in the dark sky. She'd dropped her bag in her room and come straight to her clearing in the hopes of clearing her head after that fiasco of a lecture. She had found this spot in her first year and treasured the little haven of privacy. She let her eyes go unfocused and just absorbed the silvery light. This was why she was here, she reminded herself: to go to the stars one day. Then, it would all be worth it: putting up with the whispers, the sacrifices, public embarrassment. She winced as she remembered the scorn on the major's face.

She heard a noise from the trees and looked over to see Major O'Neill entering the clearing. Suppressing a groan at her unbelievably bad luck, she started to push up onto her feet, but he waved her off.

"As you were, Cadet." She sat back warily, watching him now instead of the stars, the comfortable illusion of privacy shattered. His expression was unreadable as he stood under the half-shadows of the trees, hands jammed down into his pockets. Then he gave a wry smile and a little one-shoulder shrug. "Well, I did come all this way." He sat down on the leaf-covered ground a little distance from her.

"About earlier, Cadet..." He sighed.

"I apologize for my behavior, Sir. I should have just sat down and shut up."

Jack looked back up at the stars, fighting with himself. He was not known for being forgiving or sympathetic. The kids under his command generally referred to him as Major Hardass when they thought he wasn't in earshot. But still.. _. 'I think Carter might surprise all of us.'_

"Yeah, well, the fact that you didn't might have earned you some bonus point in my book." He saw her astonished grin out of the corner of his eye and warned, "Once I got past being angry."

"Yes, Sir." She chewed on her lip for a moment before rushing her question out. "Do you really think I wouldn't be able to handle a real-life survival situation, Major?"

She held her breath as he considered her question.

"I don't know, Cadet. You do know a lot, but knowledge from a book, or even from an expert, is still secondhand. It's the application of all of that knowledge that can get tricky. You have to think fast. You won't get a lot of time to hash out different strategies, different options."

She nodded. "I understand, Sir."

"I do know one thing, though. I don't think I'd mind being proven wrong in this case." His playful grin lifted some of the weight from her chest.

"I might just have to do that, Major," she replied, her answering smile just visible in the moonlight.


	3. One Hour

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> General Jack O'Neill meets Dr. Samantha Carter. Their fairy tale turns into a nightmare.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Loosely based on events referred to in _Point of View_

Dr. Samantha Carter grinned as she reviewed the latest test results on the new mineral SG-6 had discovered. It tensile strength and flexibility matched nothing on Earth. Her mind was already spinning through dozens of uses for this substance; she hastily scribbled notes in the margins of the report before they got away from her. This was amazing. She had gotten more done in the last week since General West had transferred out than she had in the last year under his iron rule.

A sharp rap on her office door grabbed her attention and her grin widened when she looked up and saw the slight form of Catherine Langford, head of the scientific arm of the SGA. She watched with interest as a stranger followed her into the office. A tall, handsome stranger, very distinguished in Air Force Class A's. Samantha felt her heart thud in her chest as she looked at him. God, she hadn't felt like this since... ever.

Samantha stood carefully as Catherine spoke. "Dr. Samantha Carter, this is General Jack O'Neill. As of this morning, he has taken command of the SGA. General, Dr. Carter is our head astrophysicist, technological guru, and the woman who actually got the Stargate working and made all of this possible."

Samantha blushed a bit at the praise as she walked over to where the two were standing, extending her hand. "It's good to meet you, General. If you'd like, I can brief you on our current projects." His hand clasped hers, sending unexpected tingles up her arm, but he pulled it away quickly.

"No need, Dr. Carter. I never intended to run herd on a bunch of scientists. You can report to Dr. Langford and she'll tell me whatever I need to know. Other than that, you stay out of my way and I'll do my best to stay out of yours."

Catherine saw Samantha's surprise and dismay at the brusque treatment and looked over at the general. His expression was cold and shuttered, revealing only an impersonal military facade.

"Whatever works for you, General," she heard Samantha reply, just as coldly. "Now, if you'll let me get back to my work."

Jack nodded, exiting quickly.

Samantha stared after him, trying to figure out how much of her anger came from being dismissed as a professional, rather than as a woman. She sighed angrily as she tried not to think about the way his palm had felt against hers, or the flash of warmth in those beautiful brown eyes before they had turned hard and cold.

"Well, I guess being ignored is better than being interfered with."

Catherine touched her shoulder. "He really is a good man, Samantha; don't worry. It will get better." The younger woman just rolled her eyes and buried herself back in the report on her desk. Catherine hurried out of the office to catch up to Jack.

"What the hell was that about, Jack?" Catherine questioned as soon as they were out of hearing distance of Samantha's office.

He continued walking as he answered. "Oh, come on, Catherine. You know I don't do the whole science thing."

"No, I don't know that, Jack," she replied archly. "Regardless, you have been perfectly cordial to every other member of my staff you've met this morning, until Samantha. What's so special about her?"

They arrived at the elevator and she took the time while they were waiting to study the younger man. She had known him for years; he had actually being one of the men on the first mission through the gate. General West had just had Samantha reassigned to the Pentagon at that time, which was why they hadn't met back then.

"She is crucial to this program, as General West discovered just a little too late." Catherine couldn't repress a satisfied smile at the fate of the bombastic general. "You'll have to learn to work with her, whatever your problem is, or you'll be following him."

She noted the tension in his frame as they entered the elevator car, but it was the look in his eyes that gave her pause: a cross between need and terror. Her expression changed to one of sympathy.

With the freedom granted to her by virtue of her age and her civilian status, she said bluntly, "You're attracted to her? Is that it?"

Jack stared at the metal doors and said nothing. He wouldn't lie to Catherine, but he couldn't even process the feelings that had hit him when he saw that woman. It was like someone had filled his chest with light and warmth and then stolen it right back, leaving a gaping vacuum in its place. It had been five years since he'd felt the former; every day of the last five years he'd lived with the latter.

Catherine watched as he struggled through an avalanche of emotions, piecing together his reaction. Five years ago, his wife and young son had been killed in an act of terror and revenge stemming from Jack's days in black ops. He had lived a solitary life since then, which had made him a perfect candidate for the risky first Stargate mission. On his return from Abydos, he had been promoted and moved into a desk job at the Pentagon, again narrowly missing Samantha as she was transferred first to Area 51, then finally back to Cheyenne Mountain over West's strenuous objections.

After a minute, Jack slumped against the elevator wall with a mirthless laugh and looked at Catherine. "Of all the gin joints, huh?"

Catherine smiled. "Just give it some time, Jack. There's no rush."

~ ) O ( ~

Samantha entered the commissary, planning on grabbing a tray and heading back to her lab, when her eyes were drawn to a corner table. The general was eating alone, again. She shook her head. It wasn't right for anyone to be alone that much. Sometimes, he would have meetings with senior staff members over lunch. Occasionally, Charlie Kawalsky would eat with him. But if O'Neill wasn't near the control room, Kawalsky usually was. Most days though, it was this: a man alone in a room full of people, who either couldn't or wouldn't approach him.

With a deep breath, she took her full tray and headed over to the corner. Sliding into the seat opposite him, she ignored his startled look as she opened her drink and arranged her utensils.

"Is there something I can help you with, Doctor?" he asked sarcastically.

She smiled brightly at him and started mixing her salad greens. "No, General. I just thought you could use the company. It's not good to be alone too much."

He stared at her for a minute before responding, "Or maybe it's better for everyone else."

She just gave him that look that he'd come to know from months of meetings. The very, very hot look that said, 'I know more than you do and you are not going to win this one.' He usually didn't. He swallowed and sat back, wondering what she had set her sights on now.

She started talking. He never could remember what they talked about that first day. It must have started out work-related, but somehow by the end of the meal they had a dinner date for the weekend.

One date turned into two turned into a weekend away before a month had gone by. No matter how hard he tried, there was no way he could stop himself from falling in love with her: her brilliance and her beauty and her gentle, comforting presence when the nightmares woke him panicked in the night.

And then Charlie was standing beside him as he watched Samantha walk up the aisle, a vision in satin and lace. With teary smiles and shaking hands, they exchanged rings. Voices heavy with emotion promised to love and honor and cherish till death do them part.

~ ) O ( ~

One Year Later

The ships were coming; they'd known it for months and hadn't come up with any miraculous answer. They were all working 28 hours a day. She was exhausted, Jack was exhausted, everyone was beyond exhausted, and still, the only end in sight was too horrible to contemplate.

Samantha was determined to give him this though, this one night. She had arranged with his staff that he was not to be disturbed: no calls, no meetings. She had set up a driver and Charlie had promised to physically put him into the car at 1800 hours. She had slipped out early and come home to start dinner and set the table, pulling out their wedding dishes for the first time since they'd been married.

Satisfied with the cozy picture the nicely set table made when paired with the tempting aromas from the kitchen, she smiled as she heard the door open exactly on schedule. She met him in the foyer, took his coat and hung it neatly in the hall closet before turning to embrace him. He clung tightly to her as she ran her hands soothingly up and down his back.

"They're so close," he whispered.

She pulled back and looked at him, pleading. "Not tonight. No work, just us."

He pulled her back close to him, burying his face in her hair, breathing her in. He'd seen the radar images and knew that it would be a miracle if it didn't begin tonight. And miracles were in short supply. But for her, he'd pretend for however long was given them.

Her lips brushed warmly against his neck and a shudder ran through him. "Dinner will be ready in an hour," she said softly, as her fingers began unbuttoning his jacket. She scattered kisses along his jawline as she began walking backward, pulling him toward the bedroom.

The room was lit with the warm, soft glow of dozens of candles. Clothes were removed to be replaced with lips and hands, skin on skin as they fell into bed. He tried to commit every touch, every sigh, to memory as his hands slowly brought her to orgasm. Raising himself above her, he kissed her beautiful face, flushed from climax. His heart felt like it was shattering into a million pieces as he entered her and looked down to see her eyes shining with love and lust and tears. He gave himself over to the physical then, losing himself in her warmth, trying desperately to get closer to her than he had ever been.

He could feel the cusp of her second orgasm when she tightened her thighs against his hips, her hands holding him pressed tightly to her. Her breath quickened and she panted in his ear, "Jack, please... god, please, with me... now."

He let go and thrust deeply, once, twice, and then they both stilled, tense and trembling as their bodies pulsed in and around each other. And for that moment, they were all that mattered.

They lay quietly, basking in the warm, sensual atmosphere, hands moving lazily over any skin within reach. From the kitchen, the oven timer beeped a five-minute warning. She propped her chin on his chest and smiled teasingly at him. "You have great timing, General. I have to go check the food in a minute."

"Let it burn," he growled back at her and pulled her on top of him, kissing her deeply.

His phone rang. They froze briefly before she pulled back, a stricken look on her face. He spared her a momentary look of regret before rolling over to fish his phone out of his pants pocket.

Her throat felt tight and hot tears stung her eyes as she watched her sexy, tousled husband slowly transform into the cold, battle-hardened General O'Neill. Unable to bear it, she slipped from the bed before he had hung up and started dressing.

She had wanted one last night.

She had gotten one hour.


	4. Utah

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack leads the survivors from the SGC after a goa'uld attack

Jack blew out a breath as he stepped out of the overcrowded makeshift barracks, happy that he hadn't stepped on anyone; people had started sleeping on any available surface once all the cots were claimed. He stopped when he saw Walter standing in the hallway, the gash along his jaw still vivid against his exhaustion-pale face.

"I found you a scientist, Colonel. Captain Samantha Carter. She brought in the latest group from Area 51."

Jack nodded his acknowledgement. "Any more patrols spotted?"

Walter shook his head. "No, Sir. It looks like they don't know we're here."

"Yet," Jack added grimly. "Okay, where's this Carter at?"

"Waiting in the office, Sir."

"Thanks." He started off toward his 'office' and then turned. "And Sergeant, get some sleep."

"Yes, Sir." Jack watched with resignation as Walter headed away from the sleeping quarters, no doubt off on some task that would keep this abandoned ranch-cum-military headquarters functioning for another day.

As Jack crossed the grounds between the ranch house and the small outbuilding they'd converted to an office, he thought back over the last two weeks. Apophis' attack had been sudden and brutal. They had been able to evacuate a few groups to the Alpha site, but the Mountain had fallen under attack earlier than anyone had anticipated. Hammond had ordered Jack to oversee the evacuation of SGC personnel; he'd gotten less than a third of them out. Hammond had stayed at the Mountain to ensure the self-destruct went off; they'd lost Siler and Fraiser in the first wave of troops through the gate; and Daniel...

Jack almost welcomed the dull pain in his heart when he thought about Daniel; it was the only proof he had that he could feel anything anymore. Daniel who, only weeks before, had gone through some magic mirror thing and come back with predictions of the attack and a device that could contact the Asgard if they needed help. Only no one could seem to make the thing work, and since most people (and Jack didn't know if he'd ever forgive himself for being one of them) put Daniel's warnings down to hallucinations or paranoia, researching it just hadn't been a priority. Maybe it wouldn't have made a difference.

_Jaffa had already overrun several levels of the SGC and Jack had just made the call that everyone who was getting out was out when Daniel had appeared, bloody, limping, each breath rattling loudly in his chest. Jack had stared at him, stunned._

_"I sent you with the first group, Daniel. You're supposed to be on the surface already!"_

_"Had to... get... this." Daniel held out the alien device. "It will help... Jack. Trust me."_

_Jack took the device from Daniel as the archaeologist slumped against the wall, his face contorted in agony. Jack looked from him to the access shaft, its ladder the only remaining escape route. Daniel shook his head._

_"Just go, Jack."_

And he did. He tucked the device away and climbed the ladder. He organized the survivors and led them to this place in the middle of BFE, Utah, where they were supposed to meet up with any survivors from Groom Lake.

He paused outside the office and shook the haunting memories off. He entered to see a blonde in dusty BDUs sitting on the floor, leaning against a wall. When she saw him, she jumped to her feet. He didn't know where she got the energy seeing as the exhaustion written on her face easily matched his.

"At ease, Captain Carter." Her shoulders slumped a bit, but she stayed standing. "You're science and tech?" he asked, doubtfully, as he assessed her age as younger than he'd expected.

"Yes, Sir. My degree is in astrophysics, but I'm reasonably familiar with all the technology that's been brought back through the gate." She sounded confident, at least.

Jack grabbed the device off a shelf and tossed it at her. She caught it neatly and started examining it right away. "I bet you're not familiar with that, but you're going to need to get familiar, fast."

She nodded and he could already see her making mental notes. God, her expression was just like Daniel's when he found something particularly fascinating.

"So, where's your CO?" She glanced up, a defensive look in her eyes. "No offense, Captain, but what you're holding may well be the key to saving what's left of Earth. I just want to make sure we have our best people on it."

"I'm the highest ranking officer from Research who made it out. We were hit from the sky and then everything, it was just gone," she finished softly. Their eyes locked for a moment before she looked sharply away, but he saw in her eyes the same look he'd been seeing for weeks: haunted by so much death and destruction, but left with no time to process it. He should say something inspirational, or soothing, but he just didn't have it in him right now.

"Okay, then. We're in your hands, Captain."

~ ) O ( ~

Jack tried not to hover over the next few days as she worked. Fortunately, he had plenty to keep him occupied given the realities of setting up a defensible living arrangement on a ranch in the middle of nowhere, with a mess of civilians who had no idea that aliens were real until the attack.

She had taken over the shed he had been using and had put together a team. They were scavenging parts and tools from anything and everything in sight. With the limited sleeping areas everyone was sleeping in shifts, so Jack couldn't be entirely sure, but he strongly suspected that she hadn't actually seen a bed since he'd assigned her this project.

Finally, after three days, he dropped by one afternoon to find her alone, muttering at the inert device. "Carter!" he snapped. She pulled to attention and he gave her a careful look: definitely exhausted. "You're taking a break. Come with me."

She looked confused but followed him out into the noontime sunlight, shielding her eyes for a minute until they adjusted to the brightness. He led her over to picnic table and took a seat, motioning for her to do the same. She did, giving him a questioning look.

"Rest, Captain. I hear it does wonders. You're never going to figure it out if you're asleep on your feet."

She looked like she wanted to argue, but ultimately just nodded. They sat together quietly watching some of the children pull together an impromptu kickball game, laughing even in the middle of all the horror.

"I just," she began after a while, then fell silent. Jack turned his attention back to her and she grimaced. "When it started, there were explosions and fires and everyone was running and shouting. And I did what I was supposed to, what I'd been trained to do. But all I could think was that I didn't want to die. That there's so much to life that I want to experience." He saw her watching the kids intently.

"I just, I want to make sure I get that chance. That we all do."

His eyes dropped to her hands. No ring on her finger. She was young, had probably been focusing on her career, putting everything else off for the future that was suddenly in quesiton. "You'll figure it out, Captain." Jack was a little surprised to find himself believing the words as he said them. But something told him that if anyone could, it would be the determined young woman sitting beside him. Over the past few days, he had learned that she had led a dozen civilian scientists here from Area 51, through several Jaffa patrols, and hadn't lost anyone.

She smiled weakly at him and turned her attention back to the game. They sat in comfortable silence for a while before Jack's heavy eyelids reminded him that he'd been up for something close to 24 hours now.

He stood slowly. "I'm gonna get some sack time. You should think about it yourself, Carter."

She looked up at him with a start, as if her mind were miles away. A big grin spread across her face. "Actually, Colonel. I think I have an idea." At his frown, she added, "I'm just going to try one thing and then I promise, I'll get some sleep."

He watched her head back to the shed with a wry chuckle, then headed for the bunkroom, thinking what a different situation it would have been had she and Daniel both been at the SGC at the same time. Apophis wouldn't have stood a chance against their combined determination and optimism.

It was a couple of hours later by his internal clock when she was shaking him awake. He sat up, blinked the sleep from his eyes, and asked, "What is it, Carter?"

"I think I did it, Sir. I think it will work now. I figured you'd want to be there for the test."

Her enthusiasm was contagious. He took a deep breath and pushed off the cot. "Lead the way, Captain."

They were halfway to the shed when they both stopped simultaneously, each turning in a circle to identify the source of their discomfort. "There!" she shouted, pointing to an incoming squadron of death gliders at the same time Jack spied the ground troops coming up the road.

"Everybody, take cover!" he yelled. His people immediately fell into place, the drills they had discussed over the past few days being executed to perfection. The civilians were being shepherded to the designated escape routes. Jack scooped up a little girl that was running, terrified, and then turned to see Sam heading for the shed, even as the Jaffa drew near enough that their staff blasts were now making contact with surrounding objects.

"Carter, get back here!"

"No time, Sir. I'll meet up with you at the fallback point," she yelled over her shoulder as she slipped inside.

Jack started running, trying to protect the child as best he could from the debris flying all around them. Her voice was loud in his ear as she watched behind them. "Look!"

He spared a quick look back in time to see a beam of light shoot up from the shed and through the sky. Almost immediately, a glider headed straight for the shed. He held his breath as time simultaneously slowed down and sped up. The glider zeroed in on the small building, an energy pulse flew through the air, then the shed collapsed in on itself in a smoky haze.

He reached the edge of the clearing and handed the girl over to the last group of civilian evacuees, one eye still on the shed, willing the impossible to happen. He drew his weapon. They would hold a line here for as long as they could, to try to buy the civilians time to escape.

They stood their ground for as long as they could, but it was obvious from the beginning that the Jaffa forces had the upper hand. Just as he was about to sound the retreat, there was a bright flash of light and he and his men were left standing alone. The Jaffa had all disappeared.

Another minute and the image of Thor appeared in the middle of the clearing. "O'Neill," came the strangely reverberating voice. Jack and his men walked out toward the alien hologram. "We received your signal. The current threat to your planet has been eliminated. I must take my leave now, but I will send others to assist in your rebuilding efforts."

Jack found his voice. "Thank you." Thor nodded and disappeared.

He heard people talking, radioing the evacuees that it was safe to return, relieved laughter, and pained grunts as the injured were tended to. He knew his people would take care of it; he could hear Walter organizing logistics already. So he slowly walked over to the shed/workroom and began digging through the debris.

Half an hour later, they found her body. She had likely been at the door, thrown back into the interior by the force of the blast. Jack gently took her hand in his. He thought of all the things she would never get to do, and all the things that others would be able to do because of her. "Thank you, Captain," he whispered.

A month later, he was finishing moving into his new office in the temporary US capital outside Washington, DC. He fished out a set of files from the last box and laid them on his desk. _Samantha Carter, Daniel Jackson, George Hammond,_ were at the top of the stack.

Government was still a loosely defined entity. Everything was temporary right now. There was serious talk of abandoning national governments in favor a worldwide system. The one thing Jack knew for sure was that whatever system the powers that be came up with, he would make damn sure that these people, these heroes, would receive all the honor due to them.


	5. Double Agent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Jack goes undercover during Shades of Grey, he finds himself drawn to one of the rogue cell's operatives: Captain Samantha Carter.

Jack looked over the team assembled in front of him critically. They were not so dissimilar from an actual SGC unit, like the one he had led until two weeks ago. He felt a wave of homesickness as he thought about his team, still on Earth, still thinking he had turned his back on them and everything they had fought side-by-side for over the past three years. He tamped down his simmering anger at being sent undercover with no backup to expose the rogue operation and refocused on Newman as he introduced Jack's new team.

It was pretty much what he expected: a couple of technical support staff, heavy on the fighters, and a noticeable lack of diplomatic representation. He did take notice when Newman got to their resident science geek, who really didn't look all that much like a geek. She actually looked pretty hot. Samantha Carter. He remembered seeing her name in some of the early files on the Stargate project. She had had some sort of disagreement with General West and he had booted her from the program before Jack had even come on board.

"Okay," Jack said, once introductions were complete. "What now?"

"Now, we wait until we get word from Colonel Maybourne that there's something for us to go retrieve." Newman gave him a cocky smile. "It's really a pretty sweet deal."

"Yeah, I love sitting on my ass," Jack commented dryly. "All right, time to play get to know you. I want to have a sit-down with each of you, get a read on what goes on around here. Maybe see where we need improvements." He could feel Newman bristling at his side; it looked like the hero worship phase wasn't going to last long. He turned to the younger man. "It's a good thing we've got plenty of downtime for me to get up-to-speed on the routine around here, right?"

It was several excruciating hours later when he dropped by the science lab. Overall, the members of this little rogue cell were exactly what he'd expect: power-hungry, aggressive, and completely convinced of their own superiority and their right to run roughshod over anyone who got in their way. He grimaced as he wondered when he had started channeling Daniel in his own head?

He leaned against the open doorway for a minute, watching her work. She was completely absorbed in examining something under a microscope, humming to herself as she made notes.

"Captain?"

She jumped, startled, then blushed as she straightened. "Sorry, Sir. I didn't realize you were there. I was concentrating." She gestured to the workbench in front of her.

Jack rolled his eyes, grinning. "You science types are all alike. Give you a puzzle and it's like the rest of us don't exist."

She gave him a bashful answering grin. "Shall I show you the setup here?"

He nodded and moved fully into the lab. She brought him up to speed quickly and efficiently, showing him what projects she was currently working on, what items were being reviewed for reverse engineering, explaining the process an item went through once it came into her possession. As Jack listened, he noted grimly that the SGC had made a huge mistake when they'd shown her the door. She was thorough, capable, and brilliant.

He also couldn't help but make note of how blue her eyes were and how her whole face lit up when she discussed complex technological mysteries. He found himself asking questions just to keep her talking. As she did, it became apparent that her biggest regret was not being able to talk to, or collaborate with, the creators and users of these technologies.

Jack wondered what the hell she was doing out here with these mercenaries, but she never volunteered any information about herself or her background. He assumed that her anger at being denied a spot at the SGC had made her receptive to the NID's overtures, and as Maybourne had made perfectly clear, this wasn't exactly a job you retired from.

Jack spent the next few days trying to gather as much intel as he could; there really wasn't anything else to do. They did have a video game system, but that involved spending time with Newman, and once he'd gotten as much information as he could from the arrogant young man, Jack had no desire to spend any unnecessary time with him. He learned that there were additional cells on several other planets, but no one was clear as to who was involved or where they were. That information was held by Maybourne, maybe, or his superiors. The identity of the mole at the SGC was similarly unknown.

When he felt the need to pull back and take a break, he tended to gravitate toward Carter's lab, where he would sit and watch her tinker with her toys.

"I don't suppose you hook something up to pick up _The Simpsons_ from here, huh?" he asked one afternoon.

She giggled a bit, as he'd been hoping she would. He loved to make her laugh. But there was something else there too: an edge of desperation that he hadn't expected. He frowned as he looked at her, but before he could follow up, Newman was at the door, eyes darting between the two of them.

Jack looked at the unwanted intruder. "Hello, Newman."

"Colonel Maybourne just contacted us, Sir. There's a device on P93-478 that the SGC has found too difficult to procure. We've been tasked to retrieve it."

"I've always heard that P93-478 is lovely this time of year." Jack gleefully rubbed his hands together, both to stay in character and because he was genuinely excited at the thought of a) getting out of this place for a while, and b) getting one step closer to finishing this damn mission. Carter sliding off her stool and heading for the door to gear up sobered him a little, as he thought about what the end of his mission would mean for her.

He sighed and followed her out. She had made her choice long ago and he couldn't change that.

~ ) O ( ~

Jack checked his watch again; Newman and company were five minutes late. Not normally something he'd worry about, but then, normally, he knew the people he was working with. He glanced at Carter, who was crouched on the other side of the path, wary and alert. They both jumped up, zats drawn, at the sound of footsteps running toward their position.

Newman came into sight, followed by the others, running quickly. Even as they approached, he started yelling. "Looks like we weren't the only ones after this thing."

"What do you mean?" Jack's eyes searched behind them.

"Jaffa, Colonel. Run!"

They sped by. Carter and Jack exchanged one look, then took off after them, racing down the path toward the stargate on the other side of the little copse of trees. Jack heard the crackle of staff blasts flying through the air, felt the heat, aware of Carter at his heels as they threaded through the narrow path.

He heard Carter's urgent yell just before he felt a push from behind, heard the sound of breaking wood. He fell forward, hands, chest, and face impacting the rough ground cover, rolling immediately to see Sam down behind him and a Jaffa just a few yards away, his staff weapon primed and aimed at the former captain.

Two shots from Jack's zat removed the immediate threat. His heart was racing as he sat up to find that Carter's lower leg was pinned under a branch that had fallen after being hit by a stray staff blast. She was conscious but her face was taut with pain. He looked ahead on the path but saw no sign of the team. He grabbed his radio.

"Newman, Carter's down. Get back here."

No answer. No sound from either direction on the path.

"Fuck," Jack swore. He moved over to the branch. "Okay, Sam, this might hurt a bit."

She grunted as he lifted the branch far enough that she could roll out from under it.

"Can you walk?" he asked, concerned at how pale she was.

She nodded. "Whatever I have to do to get the hell out of here."

He held out a hand to help her up, then pulled her against his side. They hurried together to the stargate, catching the rest of the team just as they were heading through. When they arrived back at the base a moment later, Newman pulled a bag from his vest and handed it to Carter. She immediately pulled out a small black boxy looking thing and started to examine it, balancing her weight on her good foot.

Jack was beyond pissed. He looked at each of the 'team' in turn, ending with Carter. "That one of those things we can send back to Earth?" he asked.

She looked up. "Yes, Sir."

"Good. Leave it alone and get the hell off your leg," he ordered brusquely.

She looked surprised but complied, putting the device back in its bag and leaving it on a nearby shelf before heading to her room.

Jack wheeled around to face the others as soon as she was out of sight.

"What the hell were you all thinking?"

Newman shrugged. "Get the device back here."

Jack scoffed. "Yeah, well, _out there_ only works if we can trust each other. We do _not_ leave people behind!"

One of the others spoke up. "All due respect, Sir: Why is Carter exempt from this lesson?" He could see the same resentful, suspicious look in all of their expressions.

"Because she got injured saving my ass. I think I pretty much know I can trust her." He glared at all of them for another minute, then turned and stalked away, heading to go check on Carter's leg. Son of a bitch, he did trust her. And that was not a good idea.

He scrubbed his hands over his face in frustration as he approached her door. She responded to his knock with a yell to come in. He opened the door to find her sitting on her bed, propped up against the wall, looking distinctly unhappy.

"Problem, Carter?"

She shrugged. "Just don't like not doing anything, Colonel."

He nodded. "Yeah. I'm pretty much the terror of the infirmary, myself."

She sighed, looking so miserable that he found himself instinctively stepping closer to her, wanting to comfort her. "It's not just this, Sir." She gestured to her ankle. "Ever since we've been cut off from Earth..." she trailed off, shaking her head.

He sat gingerly on the side of the bed. "Not exactly what you signed up for?"

She bit her lip, then laughed. "You have no idea."

 _If you only knew_ , he thought. He cleared his throat. "Let's have a look at that ankle, then."

She had already removed her boots and socks, so she only had to pull up her pant leg to reveal a nasty bruise spreading from the back of her calf around her ankle and the bridge of her foot.

"Well, that looks like it hurts."

She shrugged. "I don't think it's broken. Just painful."

He gently ran his fingers around her ankle, feeling for signs of a break or swelling. She drew in a sharp breath and he looked up quickly.

"Hurts?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Not hurts, no," she answered softly.

She stared at him and his breath caught in his throat as he took in her flushed face, eyes wide and wanting. He moved slowly, shifting his position further up the bed, trying not to jostle her ankle, before leaning in toward her. She licked her lips and he felt an electric pull, even as he paused inches from her face. He could feel her breath coming in quick gusts against his lips.

She pulled back for a second, putting a hand on his chest to prevent him from following her. "The door," she panted, smiling.

For a second, his lust-fogged brain couldn't make sense of what she was saying, then he turned to see the door to her room still standing open. He quickly closed and locked it; they may all think he was already sleeping with her, but he sure as hell didn't need to give them the full show. As he returned to the bed, he saw that she had already stripped off her overshirt.

As he sat back down, she immediately pulled him toward her, intense desire radiating from every pore, and he felt a twinge of guilt that he was here under false pretenses. Then her lips were on his, and she was murmuring, "Jack," with such a pleading, desperate sound and all he knew was that he wanted, he needed, to share this with her.

She loosened his belt and was tugging his shirt up, running her hands across his back, as she continued to kiss him deeply, thoroughly exploring every part of him she could touch with hands, tongue, lips. He pulled back long enough to lift her tank top over her head and shuck his own t-shirt.

He smiled to himself when he saw that she wasn't wearing a bra. The touch of his hands on her breasts elicited a shuddering moan from her and she arched her back, pressing herself more firmly against him. He ran his thumbs over the pointed nipples.

"Oh, gaa…" she cried out, then buried her mouth against his neck, muffling the sound. He stifled his own moan as her teeth gently bit at his carotid, her tongue sweetly soothing the skin afterward.

"I can't wait," she moaned, pushing at his pants, fumbling at her own, her haste impairing her coordination. "Want you."

He gently moved her back down on the narrow bed, then undid and removed her pants, the sight of her lying naked and flushed before him almost too beautiful to bear. Her hands were still touching him everywhere she could reach as he dropped his own trousers to the floor and her eyes dropped to his prominent erection.

The first touch of her trembling fingers on his penis almost sent him over the edge and he caught the disappointment and doubt in her eyes as he gently removed her hand. He held himself above her, one hand lightly brushing her cheek, and he kissed her gently. "God, Sam. It's been a very long time for me. I won't last if you keep doing that. And right now, I really, really want to be inside you."

He felt her shift position slightly beneath him, and then he was sliding into her, all warm and wet and god, he couldn't come yet. He cast about for anything to think about other than how good she felt around him, how beautiful she was, neck arched, head back, her mouth slightly open in pleasure as she felt him open her up.

He moved slowly, learning what she liked, how she responded. She continued to sprinkle his face and neck with kisses, murmuring his name, and letting out breathy sighs as he soon found the right angle. They moved their hips together, pushing toward each other. When he felt her wrap her good leg around his thigh, holding him tightly against her, he groaned.

"I can't..." Just as he felt the first pulse of his orgasm start to rip through him, he could feel her tightening on him and gave himself over.

He watched her afterwards as they lay together, slowly catching their breath; her eyes were closed but she was smiling dreamily, more relaxed than he had seen her since he arrived.

"Sam," he whispered, reluctant to disturb the peaceful cocoon they had created in here. "I need to tell you something."

She opened her eyes in alarm and looked over at him.

Before he could speak again, his radio crackled to life and Newman's voice spoke.

"Colonel, we've gotten the time and address to drop off the item. You'll need to leave in half an hour."

Jack fumbled on the floor and found the radio. "Understood, Newman."

Sam looked at him, her expression still wary. "I'm going to go clean up. Maybe we can talk when you get back?"

Jack was fairly certain that there wouldn't be any time to talk when he got back, but it couldn't be helped, no matter what he wanted. He stroked a thumb across her cheekbone and kissed her one more time. "When I get back."

He helped her out of bed and she hobbled to the small washroom, not quite shutting the door behind her. He slowly redressed, but was reluctant to leave immediately. As soon as he walked out that door, the countdown began. In here, he could almost fool himself that they had a chance.

He wandered around the small room, looking at the mishmash of doohickeys and tools scattered across the dresser. He saw a small music box sitting under a pile of mechanical drawings. He moved the paper and opened the lid but no music was forthcoming. He poked around a bit, trying to see if there was a second switch, when a section of the box opened to reveal a storage compartment. He stared at the small metal parts lying in the open space, parts that looked like they belonged to a comm uplink on a MALP.

A noise from the washroom had him looking up to find her standing in the doorway. Her face was carefully, deliberately, blank, but he thought he caught a flicker of fear deep in her eyes.

He smiled disarmingly. "Sorry. I didn't mean to be nosy. I was just, you know, being nosy. It's pretty," he said, indicating the music box.

"It's broken," she said softly, moving nearer to him. "I've been trying to fix it, but it's hard to find the right parts. It broke in the relocation after we'd been cut off from Earth."

Jack raised his eyebrows. It could be wishful thinking, but if he was hearing what he thought he was hearing, if that device really was some way to try to communicate with the SGC, she had been doing the same damn thing he was and had been stranded for over a year.

"Maybe I can help you out with it." Her eyes followed his as he looked down and slowed closed the cover on the hidden compartment. He looked back up at her and was overwhelmed by the palpable relief emanating from her.

"That would be great, Colonel." She subtly stressed his rank.

He nodded and swore internally. No matter what, everything had just changed.

~ ) O ( ~

The rest of his mission went as well as could be expected. He dropped off the item, identified the mole ( _Makepeace, you jackass,_ he thought), and managed to funnel Newman and his cohorts back into the SGC. When he stepped through the gate, he saw all of them being restrained, including Sam, but he didn't dare voice his suspicions in public. Instead, he channeled his frustration at not being able to talk to her by putting the restraints on Makepeace himself.

After that, he was swept up in post-mission medical checks, debriefing Hammond, his team, and their allies, and then beginning the process of trying to reconnect with the members of his team. It was some number of hours by the time he made it to the holding cells and asked to see Sam.

The sergeant on duty checked his book and looked back at Jack. "Sorry, Sir. Custody of the prisoner has already been transferred."

"Transferred? All of them?" Jack asked. Hammond hadn't indicated that the wheels would move this quickly.

"No, Sir. Just Carter. By order of an NID agent." He consulted the paperwork again. "Malcolm Barrett."

Jack spent a restless night. He hadn't been able to get a direct line to Barrett and had no idea what was happening to Sam. He prayed that Barrett was her handler and just wanted to get her home as quickly as possible. But if she hadn't been undercover, Jack really didn't want to think about what was happening to her.

The next afternoon, he was called into Hammond's office.

"Well, Colonel," the general began, smiling. "Feel good to be home?"

"Yes, Sir," Jack answered.

"Apparently, you're a hero twice over on this mission, Jack." Hammond glanced down at a file open his desk.

"Is that so, General?"

"Apparently, Captain Samantha Carter had been placed undercover by the NID to investigate the rogue cells sometime before the touchstone incident. When the cells went to ground after that, she fell off the grid."

Jack shook his head. "They put her out there with no training? No backup plan?" he asked bitterly.

Hammond looked at him sternly. "She is an Air Force officer, Colonel. And she was a logical recruit for them: being passed over for the Stargate Program, and a well-known interest in the latest technology."

"Well, glad I could be of help, Sir. I suspected that might be the case, although when I went to speak with her yesterday, she had already been transferred."

"Actually, Colonel, she is still here. Agent Barrett just wanted to make sure that she didn't have to spend the night in a holding cell. They're both in the briefing room. I understand that she'd like to say something to you."

Hammond's phone rang just as they were leaving the office. The general motioned to Jack to go ahead. He entered the briefing room to see Sam, in dress blues sitting at the table with a good-looking MIB type. They both rose when he entered.

The man spoke first. "You must be Colonel O'Neill." He held out his hand and Jack shook it. "I"m Malcolm Barrett, NID. I just wanted to thank you personally for bringing my fiancee back to me."

Jack froze his smile in place, trying to ignore the plummeting sensation in his stomach. His eyes flicked to Sam, but she apparently found the tabletop fascinating. "Just glad to help, Agent Barrett."

There was a brief silence in the room. Barrett looked around, seemingly uncertain what had caused the sudden pall. Then Walter stuck his head through the door, informing Barrett that he had a call from Washington and he could take it downstairs in the control room.

Sam and Jack listened to Barrett's footsteps descending the stairs.

Her voice, when she spoke, was hesitant. "Sir, I'd like to explain."

Jack cut her off. "No explanation necessary, Captain." He did not want to have this conversation. Denial seemed as good a tactic as any.

She flinched. "I haven't told Malcolm about..." she gestured between the two of them.

Jack snorted. "That much is obvious. Look, don't stress. We all do things out there that we would never do at home." He was being an ass and he knew it. It was just that if he stopped being an ass, all that was left was heartbreak and that wasn't something he would face here.

"Jack!" The plea in her voice made him look up to find her finally looking at him. "I haven't told him _yet_. It's been a whirlwind so far; we've barely had 10 minutes alone."

Jack stopped being angry long enough to really look at her: dark circles under her eyes, a slight tremor in her hands. She was finally feeling all the fear and tension that she had stored away for 15 months. He thought back to when he came back from being imprisoned in Iraq. The adjustment to 'real life' had been almost as traumatic as the damn prison. True, Sam hadn't been tortured or unfairly deprived of the necessities of life, but she'd been there a hell of a lot longer and with people who would kill her in a second if they suspected who she really was.

He softened.

"Sam," he reached out and then pulled his hand back before actually touching her. "Don't tell him."

He could see the hurt and confusion in her eyes.

"Not yet. Wait until you feel like you again. If you think the last day has been rough, well, it's probably gonna get worse before it gets better." He sighed.

She nodded slowly.

"So, wait. And then, if you still feel like you need to tell him, you'll know that it's you doing it and not the adrenaline and stress."

Barrett came clattering back up the stairs at that point. "Sam, sweetheart, I've got to head back to Washington. They've got a plane waiting for us at Peterson.

Before she stood, she caught Jack's eyes once more. "Thank you."

He smiled wanly. "Anytime."

~ ) O ( ~

Jack spent the next six months trying hard to forget her blue eyes, her warm smile, how she felt in his arms. He threw himself into any project that came along, added a new section to his deck, and took several trips out to the lake. Nothing had helped.

One morning, he arrived early for the senior staff briefing, as Hammond had requested. He stopped just inside the doorway, stunned to see Sam sitting there talking amiably with the general. The two looked up, and Sam gave him a hopeful smile. The general motioned for Jack to take a seat.

"Colonel, I wanted to let you know that Major Carter will be joining our team here."

"Here, Sir?" Jack repeated blankly. "At the SGC?"

"Well, she is technically assigned to Area 51 Stargate Research and Development. However, both she and I feel that having her maintain a physical presence here will be conducive to making the best analysis of any new technology as soon as possible."

"Sounds very... reasonable." He licked his suddenly dry lips. "Welcome to the SGC. And congratulations on your promotion, Major." She smiled her thanks, but it was impersonal and he felt a hollow feeling start to spread in his chest. Others were filing in, greeting their new colleague, and the meeting began.

Jack made his escape as quickly as possible once they were finished, but he could hear her following him down the hallway. He waited until they were in a reasonably quiet area, before stopping and turning to face her.

"So," he began.

"So," she answered softly.

"How's Agent Barrett feel about long-distance romances? Or is the NID finally just officially opening an office here?"

"No," she answered.

"No to which?"

"Both. Malcolm's still in Washington. We broke up," she said matter-of-factly.

Jack raised his eyebrows, his heart thudding against his ribs as he allowed himself to really look at her again. His memory had never done her justice.

She continued. "I took your advice; I didn't tell him about us, about what happened. But, when I started to feel like 'me' again, I realized that I had changed. It was the right thing to do." She smiled that sunny smile at him, and all of sudden he felt like he could breathe again.

"So, if I were to ask you out..."

"Well, I think the new me would really like that."

He smiled as he felt her fingers slip through his as she leaned in for a kiss.


End file.
